US-based coal producer Peabody Energy has announced that it is reducing coking coal production by approximately 1.5 million mt per year from its North Goonyella Mine in Queensland, Australia.
The modified production plan is designed to lower costs, improve cash flows and increase productivity, while preserving high-quality hard-coking coal reserves for sales when markets improve. With the production cut, a 35-40 percent reduction is expected in the workforce.
Peabody expects production at the mine to decline to approximately 2.3 million mt this year from the originally projected 2015 production levels of 3 million mt. Peabody continues to meet customer commitments in the current environment with reduced production levels in line with contracted sales.